More than 500,000 Tesla vehicles are under preliminary safety investigation, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is concerned that games on the dashboard touchscreen could distract drivers while electric vehicles are driving. Launched in mid-2019, Tesla Arcade offers a range of games like Beach Buggy Racing 2, but it's the most recent update that the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is now concerned about.
In a new Office of Defect Investigations (ODI) resume, NHTSA said that model 3, Model S, Model X and Model Y vehicles will all offer "Passenger Play" services from 2017 to 2022. There are about 580,000 cars and SUVs.
Worryingly, while Tesla Arcade initially only allowed access to games when the EV was parked and stationary, that has changed since its release. The system now displays a button and asks front-seat passengers to confirm that they — not the driver — will play the game while the vehicle is moving. The game also warns that only passengers in this case can play.
The new "preliminary assessment" was not triggered by a collision or accident, but by a complaint filed with ODI in November 2021. The Owner Questionnaire (VOQ) confirmed to NHTSA that Tesla will provide this "Passenger Play" feature from December 2020." Until then," the resume added, "the game is activated only when the vehicle is parked in the park." ”
Unsurprisingly, there is concern that drivers may press buttons and pretend that passengers are using a game, or even just be drawn to what is happening while others in Tesla are playing the game. As such, NHTSA explains, it "may distract the driver and increase the risk of crashing."
The agency added: "The PE has been opened to assess the driver dictation potential of tesla's 'passenger game' as the vehicle moves. "With this PE, ODI will evaluate all aspects of the feature, including how often Tesla's 'Passenger Play' is used and usage scenarios."
Minimizing the irrelevant information that drivers are likely to see has become an area of growing concern for automakers and safety regulators, especially in the past few years when smartphones and sophisticated infotainment systems have proliferated. While in-car entertainment once included radios and CD players with physical buttons, it is now more common for drivers to interact with touchscreens and smartphone projection interfaces. However, research by agencies such as NHTSA shows that even looking off the road for a few seconds to view a phone or other user interface can lead to distracted driving for tens or more miles.
At the same time, the expectations of car owners are often at odds with regulatory caution. Although the Tesla Model S can be said to have started the trend of huge dashboard displays, their implementation is now much more common. This has led to calls for access to internet browsers, games, multimedia and other features while the vehicle is stationary to help occupy passengers.
For example, Polestar 2's Android car operating system-powered dashboard has just acquired a web browser through which to access streaming media, including video. However, when the EV moves out of the parking space, it automatically switches to audio-only mode.
It's unclear exactly what NHTSA's findings will look like, though given Tesla's frequent use of OTA (over-the-air) updates, it's entirely possible that the agency will ask for a change in the way Tesla Arcade and passenger games are presented — the screen.